FOLLOW US

RESOURCES

How to reduce stress during pregnancy

Pregnancy is a stressful time of life, but you can help reduce the stress by taking care of yourself, reaching out to others, praying, prioritizing, taking some time for yourself, and being optimistic.

How to reduce stress during pregnancy

Pregnancy is a stressful time of life, but you can help reduce the stress by taking care of yourself, reaching out to others, praying, prioritizing, taking some time for yourself, and being optimistic.

Heather HoytApr 30, 2013

share

While I was pregnant with my second child, my husband found a new job. We moved eight hours away to an unfamiliar, isolated place. My husband was gone four days a week for training related to his work. I was left with a growing baby in my tummy and an energetic toddler to take care of. Stress was part of my life.

Pregnancy is a stressful time. The physical and emotional strains are intense, and then you’re usually expected to continue on with life as normal.

I wasn’t always great at coping with stress. Everyone has their bad days. But here are some things that helped me find some inner peace.

Take care of yourself

Whenever I exercised in the morning, ate healthy, drank enough water, and got enough sleep, I usually felt great. The stress of pregnancy seemed most overwhelming when I was hungry, tired, and hadn’t taken care of myself. Yoga was particularly helpful for me — it gave me additional energy, helped me prepare for labor, and helped calm any troubled thoughts.

Your body is undergoing so many changes while you are pregnant that you need to take care of it, both for you and your growing baby.

Reach out to others

I called and talked to my mom and my sisters often, and they helped support me. I also reached out to neighbors and friends — when I did, I found that they were willing to offer support and help.

You aren’t alone. Sometimes you need to be the one to ask for help because others aren’t aware of what you need. Talk to your family, friends, neighbors or doctor — don’t be afraid to express your worries and concerns and seek guidance or assistance.

Pray

Reaching out to a higher power can be exactly what you need to help you handle the stress.

Prioritize

During my second pregnancy, I wanted to get any project I was involved in done before the baby came. It was too much. So I became more flexible. The ugly wallpaper could stay up.

You don’t have to conquer the world before the baby is born. Sometimes when the stress is becoming too hard to handle, it’s good to analyze everything on your plate and eliminate the things that aren’t essential.

Take some time for yourself

It’s good to have some quiet time for pondering on occasion. I like to ask myself some questions: What do I really want? What do I really need? What am I afraid of? Understanding where my worries are coming from helps me overcome them.

It can also be a huge stress relief to indulge in whatever you love — go shopping, watch a television show, read a book or do whatever helps you recharge and makes you happy.

Be optimistic

I really wanted to go through childbirth as naturally as possible, but I became very stressed out about it — what if I couldn’t do it? What if labor was too painful? Whenever I had my doubts, I tried to reassure myself. I could do it, and if not, it really didn’t matter. Everything would turn out OK.